Prophecy
by GW Katrina
Summary: A ancient prophecy is about to come to pass.
1. Beginning

Prophecy   
Title: Prophecy  
  
Author: GW Katrina  
  
Beta's: None. Suffer! Bwahahahahaha  
  
Rating: Um, PG-13, kinda gory(not too bad)  
  
Archive: If you already have one of my stories, sure. List archives.   
If you want it, just tell me where you put it.  
  
Disclaimer: If I owned them, new seasons would now be showing.  
  
Summary: A ancient prophecy is about to come to pass.  
  
Notes: This was inspired by Michelle and episode 23.   
  
Feedback: Well... YES! Of course.  
  
Prophecy  
GW Katrina  
  
It ended and began violently.  
  
A quick ambush, a few shots, and Jim watched as Gene slumped to the   
ground. Blood rushed from the outlaw as Jim tried to patch the   
injuries.  
  
Around the pair was their surrogate family. Suzuka and Aisha took out   
their attackers. Melfina and Fred tried to help Jim, who snapped at   
them to get back.  
  
The blond didn't want anyone else touching his brother. By the   
severity and positioning of the wounds, he knew Aniki didn't have a   
chance. Logic didn't play into his desperate attempt to save Aniki.  
  
Shocked blue eyes locked onto Jim. "S..sorry," Gene gurgled, his   
lungs filling with blood. A coughing fit struck him and when it was   
finished, Jim was covered in a mist of red, while Gene's mouth was   
bright crimson. The older man whispered an apology once more, then   
stopped breathing, eyes half closed.  
  
"NO!" Jim's howl of pain and rage echoed through the night. He wasn't   
ready to let go yet. Remembering all the first-aid techniques Gene had   
forced him to learn, Jim attempted CPR.  
  
Ignoring the coppery taste of Gene's blood, the young boy breathed   
for Gene. He checked for a pulse, finding one just before it   
disappeared. With a curse, he started to do chest compressions.  
  
Strong arms pulled him back. As he struggled to get free, tears   
rolled down his face. "no," he moaned, going limp.  
  
Whoever held him gathered Jim up, holding him tight. In the back of   
his mind, Jim realized that it was Fred holding him. It didn't   
matter. Fred felt the pain almost as deep. They cried together.  
  
***  
  
Gene took in his new surroundings. All around him was mist. It was so   
opaque he couldn't see anything else. Something tickled at the edge   
of his awareness, and Gene whirled around. There was something out   
there watching him.  
  
"Who's there?" he shouted.  
  
:Calmcalmnoworryfear:  
  
The sudden voice in his head startled Gene. It surprised him, but   
there was something familiar about it. A sense of warmth he could   
barely remember.  
  
:Happyhappygoodgood:  
  
Images flashed through his mind:  
  
-Gene and his father looking at the multi-colored lights that wove   
their way though space. His father was saying that they were very   
special to be able to see the lights.-  
  
-His father, laughing as Gene waved his arms, and the family cat   
lifted into the air, hissing and spitting.-  
  
The images stopped, and Gene fell to his knees. He could barely   
remember the times he had spent with his father. Almost everything   
from before the attack was gone. He could barely remember the attack   
itself. Or the escape.  
  
Hell, after they had finally picked him up, he could barely remember   
his own name. He'd been half-mad with space sickness, having spent   
close to a month in an escape pod only meant for a week's use,   
maximum.  
  
Later, he found out that when they had pulled him out of the pod, he   
had been close to dead, repeating his name over and over.  
  
The lights. He remembered lights. Suddenly, he was slammed with more   
images.  
  
-A man reached out and felt an explosion of joy. Energy rushed into   
his body. Memories hit him. He had been the first to touch the   
magical energies since humans had began to explore space. The energy   
itself was semi-sentient, and was happy to have someone to touch it   
after so many years.-  
  
-The same man, being followed by two young children. A touch,   
followed by to light touches.-  
  
-Eyes widened in amazement as a breeze whispered over her skin. She   
could see the lines, weaving among the stars like the wind. She   
turned to her small child, and whispered that their new name would be   
Starwind, named for the power their family could see.-  
  
Gene winced, head pounding for all the images forced through it. "Why   
are you doing this," he asked, hands pressed against his head.  
  
"Because you're dead. And we need you alive to be the center of a   
prophecy."  
  
Looking up sharply, Gene saw an older man who looked vaguely   
familiar.   
  
"You really can't remember your past, can you?" Sadness filled the   
older man's eyes. "I'm your grandfather, Gene. The Galactic Leyline   
choose me to explain to you what's going on."  
  
"Grandfather?" Gene looked closely. Long, silver-streaked black hair,   
deep blue eyes, tan skin. Tall, taller than Gene. It was so hard to   
remember. He gave up trying. If the Galactic Leyline wanted to talk to   
him, he'd let it do it anyway it wanted to.  
  
"What does the Galactic Leyline want with me?"  
  
With a wave of his hand, the elder Starwind created two couch chairs.   
He sat on one, then gestured for Gene to take the other.  
  
Raising an eyebrow, Gene gave a slight smirk.  
  
"Well, sit down. Don't look at me like I'm an idiot."  
  
"I don't think that'll hold me."  
  
Grandfather glared at him. "I'm dead, not stupid. Sit down."  
  
Blinking in surprise, Gene sat down. His grandfather began to speak.  
  
The old man spoke, his words weaving a spell around the pair, then tipped his head as if he had   
heard something.  
  
"I've said enough. It's time for you to go back." The old man   
smirked. "You and that lovely young man should be able to figure it   
out from here."  
  
"'Lovely young man'? Jim?"  
  
"No, the other one. I think his name's Fred."  
  
On that note, Gene faded into darkness.  
  
***  
  
Everyone still surrounded the body of Gene Starwind. Fred held a   
still sobbing Jim in his arms. Melfina was slumped against Suzuka.   
Aisha was crouched on the other side of the assassin.  
  
Slowly, the moon rose, muting the gruesome scene with silver rays. As   
the moonbeams passed over Gene, something strange happened.  
  
"Oh my!"  
  
Suzuka was the first to notice. At her surprised tone, the others   
also looked.  
  
Where the moonlight hit Gene, injuries began to heal. It was gradual,   
slowly at first, then more rapid.  
  
Soon Gene laid there, blood soaked but whole. All were watching,   
stunned, when his chest suddenly heaved upward, sucking in cool night   
air. The single breath was soon followed by another, then another.  
  
Blue eyes blinked, then opened fully. With a struggle, Gene sat up.   
Reaching up, he wiped away the blood that ran from his mouth. He   
blinked again, the looked at the others.  
  
"Aniki," Jim whispered.  
  
TBC...  
  
  
So, what do you think? Please tell me, I can use all the feedback I   
can get. Hope you enjoy. 


	2. To Sleep

Gene Starwind was becoming use to strange things. Taking a few deep breaths, he decided this was the  
strangest. He had been dead. Couldn't remember how, just that he was dead. Now.... Well, now he  
was alive. In pain, but alive to feel it. Alive as in not dead.   
  
In Gene's mind, if you died and *talked* to dead people, you weren't going to come back without  
massive medical intervention. Or Tao magic, something none of his friends could perform.   
  
There was silence. Gene stared at the others, the others stared at him. After the Lazarus act he had just  
pulled, everybody's thoughts were scattered.   
  
It was the recently deceased who spoke.  
  
"What the hell just happened?"   
  
***   
  
It took a bit of doing, but the group made it to Fred's mostly unnoticed, even with the blood soaked  
Gene and Jim.   
  
Inside the privacy of Fred's personal quarters, sighs of relive were heard. Gene made as to sit down,  
then stopped. His hesitation did not go without being noticed.   
  
"Gene, what's wrong?" All eyes looked at Gene at Fred's question. The redhead blinked weary eyes  
and wavered. Only two things held him up. Sheer stubbornness and the Jim who had firmly attached  
himself to Gene's side.   
  
Making a jerky wave at the chair next to him, Gene answered. "You've got some nice stuff, and, in case  
you didn't notice, I'm covered in blood."   
  
Rolling his eyes, Fred walked over to his friend and pushed the exhausted man into the chair. Ignoring  
Jim's cry of 'hey', the black haired man scolded his friend. "You are my friend, Gene Starwind, and you  
mean more to me that a piece of furniture."  
  
Having the grace to look sheepish, Gene sank deeper into the softness surrounding him. He was tired,  
filthy, and still in pain. Returning from the dead, after being killed by several gunshot wounds, left a  
person drained.   
  
He wasn't the only one.   
  
Melfina looked at her friends. Gene was nearly asleep in the chair. Leaning against his legs was Jim,  
who was afraid to let Gene out of his sight. Suzuka and Aisha were still standing straight, but the bio-  
android could see the overload in their eyes. Even Fred, who always seemed slightly hyper, looked  
tired.   
  
Drawing their host to the side, Melfina told him what she saw. "Maybe it would be best for us to all  
sleep, then talk about it in the morning." Her voice was full of concern. They were *all* tired, and  
anything talked about now would be more confusing than normal.   
  
Fred nodded in agreement. Looking at the others, he could see that no matter what they were doing,  
the crew of the Outlaw Star was keeping at least one eye on Gene. Even he was doing it. Seeing this,  
he made a quick decision on rooms.   
  
"All right everybody," he called, gaining the attention of everyone in the room. "Before we do anything  
else, you are going to sleep." Raising a hand to forestall any arguments, he continued.  
  
"I'll have a servant lead anyone who wishes to bath to the tubs. It will take a few minutes, but I'm going  
to get the rooms ready."   
  
Sweeping away any comments against his plan, Fred summoned a maid. Melfina herded the other  
women, while Jim woke Gene up enough to go wash off the blood. After they left, Fred had fresh  
clothes sent, then had the rooms readied.  
  
A plan had come to mind quickly once he had seen how everyone was reacting to Gene's death and  
rebirth. What jumped to mind was a pair of suites that connected together. One was his normal  
bedroom, the other a guestroom for family.   
  
He planned on putting Gene, Jim, and himself in his normal room, and Aisha, Suzuka, and Melfina in the  
one next door. They could leave both sets of doors open, and everyone could check on all the others.   
  
Soon, Gene and Jim followed another maid into the room. It didn't take much persuasion to get Gene to  
fall asleep. Jim, use to crashing on the same bed, was soon curled up asleep next to him. Fred stifled a  
laugh. He never expected Gene to be in his bed like this.   
  
When the women arrived, he showed them the adjoining doors, and everyone agreed to leave them  
open.   
  
Fred had assumed two things when considering room selections. One, everyone would wander in and  
out of the room Gene was in, just to check on the young man. Two, after what they had witnessed, at  
least one of them would have screaming nightmares.   
  
He was correct on both accounts. 


	3. Dreams

Jim panted as he ran. Behind him, the howls and laughter of the Jackals echoed. Sliding around a  
corner, the young boy skidded to a stop, trapped in a dead-end alley.   
  
Gulping air, he spun, trying to find a way out. It was too late, the gang had already blocked the opening.   
  
"Come on, kid," snarled the black haired leader. He was limping on the leg Jim had kicked when they  
had first tried to grab him. "Ya can't run, just come along quietly." His single grey eye held bloodlust.  
  
Backing away, Jim looked around wildly. There wasn't anyway out. As One-eye came forward, the  
blond pressed as far into the corner as he could.   
  
"Damn little brat!" One-eye raised his hand, as if to strike the young computer hacker.   
  
Jim's eyes closed, but they popped open again at the sound of grunt and something hitting the ground.  
One-eye laid on the ground, gasping for air. Over him stood...   
  
"Aniki!"   
  
Having jumped on Jim's attacker from the rood, Gene glanced at Jim. "You OK?" When his little  
brother nodded, the redhead turned steely blue eyes on the groaning gang leader.   
  
"I'm going to assume you're the idiot who thought grabbing Jim was a good idea." Shaking his head,  
Gene placed his foot on One-eye's left wrist. "That was a mistake." The wrist bones began to grind  
together as Gene pushed his foot down and twisted.   
  
At the ensuing scream, a few of One-eyes minions started forward. A gun appeared in Gene's hands.  
"This is between me and Idiot-boy here."   
  
Around the opening of the alley, the Jackals settled in. The young bounty hunter had just made a  
challenge. It would only end in one way. Death.   
  
Knowing the rules of the challenge, Gene gave one final twist of his foot, then stood back.   
  
Wincing, One-eye rose to his feet, cradling his injured wrist. The bloodlust Jim had seen earlier now  
blazed in his lone eye.  
  
"Gonna die, bounty hunter!" One-eye pulled his dagger.   
  
Even as he made the first slashing attack, One-eye was blocked by Gene's own blade. Several scars  
already decorated the redhead's body, telling of many fights.   
  
At first, the pair only danced around each other, testing the other's skill. Blood flowed freely from small  
nicks and cuts, nothing serious.   
  
Keeping a wary eye on the gang, Jim pulled out his mini-computer. Typing on it, he pulled up any files  
the police had on One-eye. Finally he got the information he was looking for.   
  
"Aniki, his right arm's been modified!"   
  
One-eye screamed at Jim's yell and tossed his blade to his left hand. A flick of the wrist, and three-inch  
blades protruded from the fingertips. Now Gene faced a two weapon attack.   
  
The dance upped a notch. One-eye now used the finger-blades, left wrist still damaged by Gene's  
punishment earlier. Now red flowed more rapidly, dripping onto the pavement.   
  
Rushing Gene, One-eye used his superior weight to bodyslam the young redhead into the wall. He  
backed away with a scream. Jim didn't know what had happened. At least not until he saw the bloody  
blade in Gene's hand.   
  
With a smirk, Gene pushed away from the wall, rubbing his ribs. "So, are we done playing," he asked  
the still cursing gang leader.   
  
Now half-mad with pain, One-eye lashed out with the dagger in his left hand. As Gene dodged, the  
finger blades struck. Only two caught, leaving a pair of deep cuts on Gene's left cheek.  
  
Both Jim and Gene yelped at the sudden injury. Ignoring the pain, Gene lunged back at One-eye. The  
battle turned from a dance to something close and dirty.   
  
In such close quarters Gene wasn't able to dodge as well, pinned as he was by One-eye.   
  
With a laugh, One-eye plunged his hand into Gene's side, all five finger blades penetrating.   
  
The laughter turned into a chocked gurgle as a blade pierced his throat. Grey eye meet blue, and Gene  
smiled, despite the pain. "Nobody messed with my brother." A twist of the blade and One- eye fell,  
finger blades ripping from Gene's side. Blood gushed from the injuries. A scream broke the night air.....   
  
***  
  
Jim shot upright, gasping from the nightmare. He still remembered the fight well, even though he had  
only been eight.   
  
The scream sounded again, and the bed he sat on bounced as Gene threw himself to his feet. On the  
other side of the bed, there was a thud, and the distinct sound of Fred yelping.   
  
All three males ran through the open doors, stopping as the screaming stopped. All eyes focused on the  
source.   
  
Melfina blushed at the attention. Blinking large brown, she looked down. "I'm sorry. I was having a  
nightmare.   
  
Someone had been chasing Jim, then Gene showed up and fought a one- eye man. When Gene killed  
him, the man hurt him, and there was blood everywhere, and...." Her voice trailed off as she sucked in  
more air.   
  
There was a blur of movement, and Aisha was bouncing on the bed next to Melfina. "I had the same  
dream," she mreowed.  
  
"As did I."   
  
Fred nodded. "I did too. How about you two?"   
  
Gene and Jim shared a look, then nodded. "It was more like reliving it," Jim supplied. Gene agreed,  
eyes still showing exhaustion. He sighed.   
  
"I think I did it."   
  
TBC....   
  
Hehehehe, yet another piece I wrote when tired. Hope you like this one as much as you like the other  
two. :GW waves at the reviewers at Fanfiction.net.: Thank you for writing. I'll do personalized thank  
you later. Also, if I get enough reviews, I'll do a sequel.   
  
GW Katrina 


	4. The Book

Fred looked at Gene with wide eyes. "You?"  
  
With a shrug that managed to look cocky, even with the unsure look on his face, Gene sat down on  
Suzuka's bed. "I don't know. When I look at you guys now, half the time I don't see you. I see sparks,  
balls of bright, multi color light. And bands of light tie us all together." He shook his head, shoulders  
slumping as if a large weight has fallen on them. "Things are just popping into my head, and I don't  
know where they are coming from."  
  
A gentle hand rested on Gene's shoulder. He looked up into Fred's soft eyes. "We're all right here,  
Gene. We will be as long as you need us, and," the other man smirked. "Most likely when you want to  
be left alone."  
  
A weak smile crossed Gene's face, and he lifted his hand to give Fred's forearm a squeeze. "Thanks."  
He looked at the others. "Everyone."   
  
Melfina rose and also sat on Suzuka's bed. "We're your friends, Gene. Nothing you can do can change  
that. We will always be here for you."  
  
"Unless you stop bathing. Then we would avoid you. What?" Aisha blinked innocently at the glares that  
were tossed her way.   
  
Wrapping an arm around Jim, who had also sat on the bed and was reattached to Gene, the outlaw  
smiled again, a bit more strongly this time.   
  
Suzuka was the first to notice the strange look in Gene's eyes. One that warned her that he was hearing  
something that the rest of them couldn't. It had been less than a day since Gene's "rebirth," and already  
she had seen the changes. They were small, but still there.   
  
Since the assassin had seen the look, she was prepared when the red head stood.   
  
There was a pause, no one daring to say anything, then Gene looked at Fred. "Did you get any books  
lately? Any real books?"  
  
Startled by the question, Fred's mouth moved, but no words came out. Finally, he stopped and thought  
about it.   
  
"Actually, my last shipment did have one extra book." He looked at the others, dark eyes narrowed. "It  
was extremely odd. No one misplaces a book like that. Not a real one, anyway."  
  
Aisha looked at the humans as if she thought they were insane, which might have been close to the  
truth. "Who cares about some book? I want to know when we're going to look for the Galactic Leyline  
again."  
  
"Real books are really rare, Aisha," Jim told the cat-girl. "Ones that are made of paper aren't found  
very much anymore, so their worth a lot of money." He blinked. "I've never seen a real book before,"  
he mumbled.  
  
Gene was ignoring all of this. "Let's go see this book, Fred."  
  
The black haired man said nothing, just left the room, followed by Gene. The others sat for a few  
seconds, then trailed after the two men.  
  
Soon, all of them were in Fred's office. "I was going to send it back to the people who sent me the  
shipment, but I haven't had a chance yet," Fred told them as he pulled a box out of the drawer. "It's  
been sitting here for a few days now."   
  
Setting the box on the desk, he pressed his thumb against the keypad. There was a soft hiss as the  
environmental seal that helped protect the valuable book was unlocked. Fred carefully opened the box,  
exposing the book.  
  
A deep brown in color, it had a faint musky smell to it. Jim's eyes grew large, and Gene could just see  
his little brother fall in love. Of course, it wasn't like the book didn't call to him, too. In several ways.  
One was the fact that sitting on Fred's desk was something worth several hundred thousand wong,  
possibly more. Another was that whatever was tugging at him was centered around that book.  
  
Gently, Fred lifted the book from the box. He sat it down, then looked at Gene. As did everyone else.  
  
"What?"  
  
Before the others could answer, something strange happened. Gene got the feeling that it wouldn't be  
the last strange thing to happen to them.  
  
From nowhere, a cool wind swirled around the six people and the book. It smelled of fresh flowers and  
clean air as it swept through the room. The book began to flip. Fred and Jim both yelped and moved  
for it, but Gene place a hand on each of their shoulders. "Don't," he whispered. Reluctantly, both froze  
as the book's pages flipped wildly.  
  
As sudden as the wind had started, it stopped. The book's pages settled, and the group, those who  
could see the small lettering, look at the words.  
  
"What kinda language is that?" Aisha yelped, her eyes large. Spidery, the letters crawled all over the  
page. They were in some type of order, but nobody was sure of what type of order.  
  
Gene looked at the words, eyes narrowed in thought. "Jim, think you could use your computer and that  
super brain of yours to translate?"  
  
Jim nodded. "It'll take me a few days at least. I have a new Rosetta program I want to try. It should  
help."  
  
Looking at the others, Gene sighed. "Looks like we're stuck here for a few days." He blinked, then  
looked at Fred. "If you don't mind, that is?"  
  
Fred laughed. "Gene, Gene, Gene." He just shook his head. "When will you understand that you are  
always welcomed to come and abuse my hospitality?"  
  
With a smile, Gene felt himself relax. "Well, I'm going to abuse your kitchen. Jim, you want anything?"  
  
The youngest of the group had left to get his laptop. Making a mental note to make a sandwich for Jim,  
Gene also left.  
  
Things were starting to move.   
  
TBC... 


End file.
